State employees in South Carolina carry the taxpayer-funded State Procurement Cards, also known as P-Cards, to pay for items like supplies, equipment and materials for state business use.

In January 2011, an audit found a significant amount of misuse. Among the findings, employees were using the card for personal use, including buying gift cards.

In one case, an athletics coach at USC Upstate used the P-Card to buy an airline ticket to Alaska for his wife and daughter. That coach was disciplined.

The audit also found inadequate documentation of P-Card purchases, including missing receipts and missing statements.

A new report just released Tuesday morning shows improvements, but the WYFF News 4 Investigates team found changes still need to be made so taxpayers know exactly what state employees are buying.

Following the January 2011 audit, the Legislative Audit Council made recommendations to make the P-Card program more transparent.

On Tuesday, it was revealed that out of the 33 recommendations, 27 have been implemented by state agencies.

The recommendations not yet implemented include: the State Ports Authority and the state-owned utility Santee Cooper needing to require card-holders to post transactions to their websites.

Also, state agencies need to report to the Comptroller General's Office any disciplinary action taken against anyone who misused the P-Card.

The Legislative Audit Council also recommended the General Assembly require all state agencies to provide P-Card data and any disciplinary actions taken against employees to the Comptroller General's Office to post on its website, and that has not yet happened.

WYFF News 4 Investigates will update you when more state agencies comply.